The Grants Pass mayor appears to have kept her seat after a tense recall election Tuesday night.
Sara Bristol will remain the mayor of Grant Pass. Voters chose to keep her with 5,455 votes out of 8,478 counted in Tuesday night’s preliminary results.
Grants Pass Mayor Sara Bristol was elected in 2020.
City Of Grants Pass
Bristol was elected to the unpaid, volunteer position in 2020, which mostly consists of presiding over the city council.
A recall petition against Bristol was filed by Grants Pass resident Suzanne Barber, who said Bristol doesn’t represent the conservative values of her constituents and hasn’t done enough to address homelessness.
Bristol has said she’s trying to balance dealing with the issue while also operating under a 2020 court ruling that restricts the city from cracking down on public camping.
Bristol could not be reached for comment on Tuesday night.
Turnout for the recall was far lower than in other recent general elections. Only around half the number of people voted in the recall than when Bristol won her seat in 2020.
The vote won’t be finalized until after Oct. 3, when ballot issues like signature mismatches are fixed.